Happy Easter! In Tanzania, Good Friday is a bank holiday as is this coming Monday (to celebrate Easter), so almost everyone is in the midst of a four day weekend. While the Diploman and I were, at first, bummed to have stayed behind, it’s already proven to be a great decision– so many of our favorite people in Dar have stuck around, as well. Throw in a little birthday in the mix, and, well, it’s been a good weekend.
This photo was taken last Sunday, when a few friends and I were lazing on Kilwa beach over a three-day weekend. More info and pictures about Kilwa coming up in a couple posts next week!
The Diploman took a trip to Zanzibar last weekend and purchased this beautiful chest from a man who makes them by hand. These chests, along with similarly ornate but large Zanzibar doors, are two of the more beautiful ‘souvenirs’– if one can call this massive thing, or a door, a souvenir. It’s not something that I would typically call my style, but I keep going downstairs to look at it, so I guess it is?
Even in a community as small as Dar’s expat community, you find yourself at or going to events where you know very few people and have the opportunity to make new friends. That’s a huge reason Dar has increasingly grown on me; little pockets of fun and like-minded community members that you never even knew existed. Surprise!
Went to City Centre’s Uhuru Street today, where a concentration of textile and fabric wholesalers are located. It’s nothing like the wholesale markets in China, but I got a pretty good spread of fabrics anyway (but you guys know, when do I ever have a tough time buying things?). As always, City Centre fascinates me to no end. I love this picture because it could very well be three separate pictures, all on their own. This guy on the left is something else.
Usually I drive everywhere, even to the grocery store that’s a 10 minute walk away. Until today, I hadn’t taken a bajaj since we first arrived into town almost 9 months ago.
The DiploMan told me today that all the Bajaj’s in town are the same age; they were imported into Dar about two years ago. Before then, absolutely no Bajaj’s existed. Does anyone know if this is indeed true?
I guess, when I think about it, they all look equally used but not terribly old. Even the junkier ones around here aren’t like the old ones we’ve seen in other parts of the world. It’s just that I’m having such a hard time imagining the city’s landscape without them.
